Behind the Planet of the Apes

This has to be the best movie franchise documentary I've seen in many years.

When I rented this DVD from the library yesterday, I thought it was only about the making of 'THE ORIGINAL' 1968 "Planet of the Apes" movie...but, it's much, much more than that.

This brings you through the ORIGINAL 1968 "Planet of the Apes" movie, but, also through the entire "Planet of the Apes" movie trilogy -

1. "Planet of the Apes" (1968);

2. "Beneath the Planet of the Apes" (1970);

3. "Escape from the Planet of the Apes" (1971);

4. "Conquest of the Planet of the Apes: (1972);

and,

5. "Battle for the Planet of the Apes" (1973);

The documentary also focuses on the live-action television series -

"Planet of the Apes" (1974);

and, the animated television series -

"Return to the Planet of the Apes" (1975)...

as well as the merchandising of the toys and accessories children my age once had but later sold for pennies in a 1980-1990 tag sale and is now worth a small fortune on eBay!?!?

If "Star Trek" fans are called 'Trekkies,' it's only fair that "Planet of the Apes" fans are called 'Apeies!?!?' I suppose I'm both! :)

This is a MONUMENTAL DOCUMENTARY that highlights one of the greatest movie franchises of all time! Whether you're familiar with and like "The Planet of the Apes" in any way, shape, or, form; or, you're a newcomer who's interested in seeing what it's all about...this documentary is exactly for you! :)

This is a pretty good making-of documentary, insofar as it includes a lot of clips and a pretty good feeling for how and why everything was done. The thing about it that made me laugh, however, was how much they overstated the value of the series. While I will admit that the many sequels may have set an unfortunate precedent, I feel the films themselves weren't quite as important as the writers of this documentary would have us believe.

Interesting and informative documentary recounts the story of how Pierre Boulle's novel was adapted to the big screen, with the determined support of star Charlton Heston, and the growing cast of actors chosen like Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, James Whitmore, and writer Rod Serling, with director Franklin J. Schaffner, and how its surprise box-office success led to a most unexpected franchise...

Covers all five Apes films(at that time!) in an informative and entertaining way, with behind the scenes footage and trivia that fans often crave. The late Roddy McDowall hosted, and did a fine job, being so closely involved with them of course! Was first shown on AMC, then released as an extra disc on the DVD set, it is well worth watching.

This is an excellent look at how the five Planet of the Apes films as well as the television series and the animated cartoon. It also was sad too knowing that this was probably one of the last projects that Roddy McDowell worked on before he died. However, the main thing I did enjoy about this documentary was the original test footage featuring Edward G. Robinson as Zaius and a young James Brolin as Cornelius. Also, I was fascinated by some of the interesting behind the scenes tidbits that it showed. This is a great documentary about one of the most enduring film series in motion picture history.

This is a Documentary hosted by Roddy McDowall (Cornelius/Caesar/Galen) giving a history and behind the scenes glimpse of the making of the Planet of the Apes franchise, complete from the first 1968 film up to the cartoon series. There are some interesting little tidbits that may not be common knowledge to some POTA fans. I could list them, but that would spoil some of the surprises this documentary has to offer. It does not include anything about the new POTA movie with Mark Wahlberg, but that may have been made after this documentary. We learn about the adversities the original POTA makers encountered in the beginning. As well as the details of the original production such as budgets, original plot details that were later scrapped, and original casting.

I would not recommend watching this until you have seen all 5 POTA movies, as they give out the endings of each one. Enjoy!